All

4 Albums We Can Leave in 2016

This year has seen some great releases from artists like A Tribe Called Quest’s We Got It from Here… Thank You 4 Your Service to David Bowie’s Blackstar. There have also been some… hiccups. If you were unfortunate enough to purchase or merely download one of those, here are some remedies for the records we’d honestly rather forget as we move into the New Year:

1) California by blink-182
Before you start accusing me of contradicting myself, realize that a successful album within a genre is different from a successful album overall. For a standard issue pop punk release, California is a good record; however, when held up in comparison to the other albums that came out this year or their other releases that came out over the course of blink’s career, it just doesn’t hold up. Instead of “Rabbit Hole”…

Try “Last You Heard of Me” off of Cody by Joyce Manor
This album carries the adolescent fervor that blink was able to tap into in the past. This energy that blink captured so succinctly in their earlier albums, they tried somewhat in vain to channel in California. Maybe it was the missing DeLonge element, maybe it was just the band member’s age showing their inability to write songs about misguided youth. Either way, Joyce Manor picks up nicely where they left off with a touch more truth to blink’s punk roots.

2) Hymns by Bloc PartyLet’s be honest, Bloc Party hasn’t been Bloc Party since Silent Alarm. The band has just lacked the hooks and appeal that it managed to conjure earlier in it’s career. Some blame lineup changes, some attribute the group’s slump to the natural death of a band running its course. Whatever the reason, Hymns was just down right skippable. Instead of “My True Name”…

Try “One Man, No City” off of Human Performance by Parquet Courts
Although this record isn’t the strict sync rock that fans have come to know Bloc Party by, it’s still a guitar driven, solid release. A vaguely Pavement-esque record, Human Performance is a consist follow-up of sound that Bloc Party fans may find missing minus the electronic element.

3) Give A Glimpse Of What Yer Not by Dinosaur Jr.
It was almost impossible to hit the mark that Dinosaur Jr. set for themselves in writing a follow-up to 2012’s I Bet on Sky or their stronger releases in the ’90s. Much like Green Day’s Dookie, some efforts just can’t be followed-up no matter how seasoned the musicians. Instead of “Goin’ Down”…

Try “Still Breathing” off of Revolution Radio by Green Day
What the Green Day struggled to find in their Uno!, Dos!, Tre!, trilogy, they’ve honed in on here. The band has re-earn their spots as fathers of the genre and with Revolution Radio prove that an older band can come back with just as much as punch as a younger one.

4) The Ride by Catfish and the Bottlemen
This record is perhaps the definition of a sophomore slump. Catfish and the Bottlemen stunned us with their debut The Balcony. So much so that perhaps they overshot their goal in their desperation to win our approval with their follow-up. The songs on The Ride aren’t outwardly bad in that they’re offensive to the ears, we just expected better. Instead of “Twice”…

Try… “Love Me” off of I like it when you sleep, for you are so beautiful yet so unaware of it by The 1975
With a title that sounds like an early aughts emo record, this album had the odds stacked against it from the start. However, the English band followed up their debut with a stunning second performance in a way that Catfish failed to.

You can download all these disappointments (as well as their remedies) for free on the Trebel app today. Click here to learn more.